Santa Claus and Other Bringers of Gifts

Gift-giving is a near-universal part of Christmas celebrations.

The concept of a mythical figure who brings gifts to children derives from Saint Nicholas, a good hearted bishop of 4th-century Asia Minor.

The Dutch modeled a gift-giving Saint Nicholas around his feast day of December 6. In North America, English colonists adopted aspects of this celebration into their Christmas holiday, and Sinterklaas became Santa Claus, or Saint Nick. In the UK, whilst this name is widely known, "Father Christmas" is more common, and is also used in many West African countries. In the Anglo-American tradition, this jovial fellow arrives on Christmas Eve on a sleigh pulled by reindeer, and lands on the roofs of houses. He then climbs down the chimney, leaves gifts for the children, and eats the food they leave for him. He spends the rest of the year making toys and keeping lists on the behavior of the children.

One belief in the United Kingdom which has been passed down the generations, is the idea of 'Good' and 'Bad' lists of children. Throughout the year, Santa would add names of children to either the good or bad list depending on their behaviour. When it got closer to Christmas time, parents would use the belief to encourage children to behave well. Those who were on the bad list and whose behaviour did not improve before Christmas were said to receive a piece of coal for their 'gift' on Christmas Eve rather than presents.

The French equivalent of Santa, Père Noël, evolved along similar lines, eventually adopting the Santa image Haddon Sundblom painted for a worldwide Coca-Cola advertising campaign in the 1930s. In some cultures Santa Claus is accompanied by Knecht Ruprecht, or Black Peter. In some versions, elves in a toy workshop make the holiday toys, and in some he is married to Mrs. Claus. Many shopping malls in North America and the United Kingdom have a holiday mall Santa Claus whom children can visit to ask for presents.

A classic image of jolly old Saint NickIn many countries, children leave empty containers for Santa to fill with small gifts such as toys, candy, or fruit. In the United States, children hang a Christmas stocking by the fireplace on Christmas Eve, because Santa is said to come down the chimney the night before Christmas to fill them. In other countries, children place their empty shoes out for Santa to fill on the night before Christmas, or for Saint Nicholas on December 5. Gift giving is not restricted to these special gift-bringers, as family members and friends also bestow gifts on each other.

Christmas gift-bringers around the world

Άγιος Βασίλης (Greece) — means "Saint Basil"
Christkind (Southern Germany, Switzerland, Austria, and Liechtenstein) — means "Christ Child"
Father Christmas (U.K.)
Gwiazdor (some regions in Poland)
Joulupukki (Finnish folklore)
Jõuluvana (Estonian folklore)
Julenissen (Norway)
Jultomten (Swedish folklore)
Kris Kringle (U.S.) in popular use through the middle of the 20th century
La Befana (Italy)
Los Reyes Magos (Spain) — means "The Three Kings"
Niño Dios, Santa Claus, and Los Reyes Magos (Mexico)
Old Man Christmas
Papá Noel (Latin America)
Papai Noel (Brazil)
Père Noël (French-speaking countries)
Saint Nicholas or "Saint Nick"
Svatý Mikuláš (Saint Nicholas) or Ježíšek (Santa) (Czech)
Święty Mikołaj / Mikołaj (Poland)
Viejito Pascuero (Chile)
Weihnachtsmann (Germany) — means "Holy Night Man"